


Screaming Demons

by Lirusen



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Angst and Humor, Demons, F/M, Magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-24
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-04-19 08:13:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14233050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lirusen/pseuds/Lirusen
Summary: How would you define true friendship?In my opinion, as the most bizarre thing to happen if it occurs between a boy whose ass literally sets on fire and a girl who won't stop throwing ceramic objects at people in rage.But in my defence, I can't help it if I'm made of fire.***Kang Minseon doesn't know what to do when her bathtub is home to flames by an intruder who appears to not be human. Lee Hwitaek, in fact, introduces himself to be a demon to her, even going as far to offer a cup of fire when making hot chocolate goes wrong.Literally.However, Minseon could not be more overwhelmed by the knowledge of beings that breach natural laws, despite her personal life already being a lot to handle. But as she is introduced into a new supernatural world, her trust is tested to the very boundaries of its limit, and she herself becomes very confused about the human world she has been raised in.Good and evil seem to be very clearly defined, but is it the result of the greed for power or does it really serve a purpose to everyone?





	1. FIRE ON ONE

Beyond frustrated with the being that infected her very residence with his presence, Minseon scowled at the man lying across her sofa, who wore a dream-like smile on his face as his eyes shut. His attire was peculiar to her in all sorts of ways; a cream shirt tucked into brown pants, both of which were marked with brown dirt, and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbow, revealing bruises along his arm. Baffled, Minseon sat down in the nearest chair, a green chair embroidered with a silky scarlet, and her eyes attracted to his dusty pink hair.

"You've been in my apartment for a week, and you don't seem to have the intention to move out any time soon." Frowning, Minseon tugged her laptop from the coffee table nearby towards her as she waited for a reply. She'd long given up on trying to kick him out.

An eternity of silence passed before he spoke, just when Minseon thought he'd dozed off. "No, don't worry, I'll leave soon enough," he said, but evidently had no intention to move from his position. "But I can't really do that very quickly since I can't teleport like I usually do."

"Yes, yes, you've told me that many times," Minseon replied, typing furiously on her laptop. Even though she wanted to learn about the paranormal being and his business here, her priority lay with her earnings. She was keen to grab this particular opportunity at one of the top companies in South Korea, Adachi Enterprise. According to research, it was one of the best places in the world to work. In other words, it was highly unlikely to get a job there.

It wouldn't hurt to try, would it?

And strangely enough, she had gotten used to the supernatural presence in her apartment, even though the man seemed to resemble a fire-breathing dragon in terms of ability. At first, her apprehension got the better of her, threatening to throw knives with a 'ninja's precision'. In his defence, he committed no wrong, made no advances to her, but just wanted a place to stay. Sometimes he wouldn't even be found anywhere, but popped up when he wished. "You're also a demon who happened to be catapulted into my fucking bathroom at a record-breaking speed by your so-called sister. How the fuck do I know you don't watch me in the shower?"

Maybe she hadn't quite gotten used to him.

Opening one eye, Hwitaek raised an eyebrow. "You don't seem to believe me? I mean, at least you no longer have to worry about showering next to a broken window and people seeing your stuff." 

The man introduced himself as Lee Hwitaek, a demon, only seconds after they met, and despite what she witnessed, Minseon was still skeptical of his claims.

"I've been surrounded by humans, or mortals as you call them, my whole life, and then some dude that's jumped out of a Shakespearean play sets my bathtub on fire. And then he proceeds to say some mumbo jumbo about his world, or whatever it is, and confuses the shit out of me-"

"I then stay in your apartment for a week without food or drink," Hwitaek interrupted, sitting up. His eyes were a vivid azure, like the sky on a sunny day. "But when I do eat, I'm unaffected. That doesn't make me a ghoul or whatever you were calling me. But what do you have against my clothes?" His eyes raked down his lanky figure in question. "They look fine to me. Other than they need to be washed."

"There's nothing wrong with them, but compare them to other people and you stick out like a sore thumb." Yes, Minseon never left the apartment block with him tagging along, but one only had to sneak a glance at him to assume he was a cosplayer.

And somehow, Hwitaek hid a stash of clothes somewhere, as every morning his clothes were pristine down to the thread. Minseon briefly suspected it was from the (notably small) leather satchel she spotted him carry, but chose not to question it.

"That's a good thing, though. Anyway, I think you're more worried about me being real than what I am." His smile wasn't pitiful. "In that case, here we go."

"What...?"

He held a calloused hand out, and Minseon paused her work to watch it intently. This was the first time he made such a move since their first encounter. Minseon herself was busy the whole week, filing job applications in an effort to finally leave her troublesome job in the café, and find somewhere where she could work for a decent salary, although she was still studying for her university degree.

This day may have been the least stressful for her if it wasn't for Hwitaek, but wouldn't admit out loud that she was fascinated by his antics (except he refused to share what he did when she wasn't at home). 

The option to call the police had nearly been pursued multiple times, but no one was going to believe her. However, a nagging thought in the back of her mind reminded that after he left, so would the small sliver of excitement that came with him.

So she gazed at the nascent spark that ignited within his palm, and it quickly grew into a flame which flickered with life, exploring its surroundings with eagerness. It had the energy and curiosity of a child as Hwitaek tamed it and grew it so that it was taller than both of them. The flames nearly touched the ceiling, and Minseon's initially hypnotic expression turned to concern. On the other hand, Hwitaek appeared completely contented with the blazing fire sprouting from his hands.

"U-uh, Hwitaek? Are you sure this is safe?" Minseon stared upwards, worried although moved by the vibrancy of the crimsons, oranges and yellows that danced around each other in synchronisation. "You did set my bathtu-"

"You aren't going to let that go, are you? Relax."

Hugging her laptop to her chest, Minseon was obviously still disquieted by his nonchalance. "You're telling me to relax when you could totally destroy my flat?"

Giving her a deadpan look, Hwitaek flicked his wrists, and the inferno flew towards Minseon, who braced her arms in front of her, holding her laptop hostage. The temperature rose rapidly, but rather than touching her, tendrils of the inquisitive fire snaked around her, only a foot away from the chair.

Reluctant, she lowered the device in her hand to discover it was still left unharmed by the bite of the flames. A smile teased the corners of her lips as her eyes then fixed onto the changing circle around her.

Minseon always did love the warmth and welcome of fire from a young age, but as she grew older, she sometimes acted reluctant towards its potential to be destructive. However, right then she chose to forget about its power, and concentrated on its beauty.

The fire then dispersed itself into the surroundings, and Hwitaek seemed at peace with Minseon's reaction. "Awesome, right?"

"Hell, yeah." The woman still seemed dazed by the spectacle, grinning wildly. "Can you do anything else?"

Hwitaek snorted. "I'm a demon, not a wizard. I'd usually teleport, but I can't for the moment. Family problems, you know?"

"Oh, right." An awkward silence.

"What's with that, though?" Minseon pointed to his necklace, a gem attached to a cord as opposed to a chain. It was a ruby, the fiery redness as dark and vivid as blood. Perhaps if she stepped closer she'd be able to find her silly reflection on the scarlet slivers.

"I got it from my sister," he explained briskly. "A long time ago."

Minseon wasn't satisfied with his vague response. "You have a strange relationship with your sister." But didn't all siblings have weird relationships? No two, or three, or four or more were the same, and Minseon could definitely vouch for that.

Hwitaek didn't reply.

"For real, though, when are you leaving? I should even charge you for staying here, but you're a demon. Do you even deal in currency?"

Hwitaek stood up, stretching his limbs. "We don't most of the time because there's no need to. But we understand how it works in the mortal world, in case we have to use money for business here." He gestured, conjuring little flames with his hands. "You look more interested in what I do, Minseon, and pissed rather than shocked."

Their conversation soon shifted to trivial matters, where Minseon revealed more about herself than vice versa. But it was only minor facts about her, not a life story, an old habit she long accustomed to. It was that which made their small chats come to dead ends so often.

She then excused herself to the bathroom, yet still suspicious as she locked the door, pressing her ear against the wood for a few seconds.

Hwitaek could probably set the door on fire while she was reading a book on the toilet.

But afterwards she stared at her own ghastly reflection in the mirror on the small cupboard, placing both hands on either side of the basin beneath. Her usually pale face looked sickly, and she snorted at her unkempt appearance. It was normal, she thought, eyes averting to the small bottle discarded in the bin nearby, still not empty of its contents.

Eunsol would not be happy.

In fact, Kang Eunsol wouldn't give her sister any time to defend herself before expressing her disappointment through an earful.

Grimacing at herself, Minseon stared downwards into the basin, the off-white porcelain dotted with watermarks. Although she recovered from her brief hangover earlier that day, she was not at all feeling ship-shape at that moment, despite the quick rush of joy Hwitaek had given her through his fire.

In fact, she felt a little queasy.

Blinking away an approaching headache, Minseon turned on the tap, watching cold water rush into her hands. She disliked the sensation, but brought her hands to her face quickly anyway, shivering at the icy contact of water. She then rested her hand on the tap, twisting it. 

However, the water kept on gushing out and the tap turned loosely, like an unscrewed screw as opposed to tightening one. Eyes narrowed, Minseon then spun it the other way, getting more tensed as the power of the rushing water increased to that of a waterfall. Abruptly, the knob snapped off, tumbling onto the tiled floor with a noisy clatter, and she cursed out loud, then pushing her hands to the spout with weak effort.

Something like this was completely abnormal -- her taps usually ran fine, and never did she have to deal with any problems like this. Her apartment block itself was pretty respectable. 

There was an abnormal, clunky sound to the left of her, and Minseon was rendered speechless at the sight when she turned to it. What should have been there was the tap in the bathtub, but instead water exploded from a hole in different directions uncontrollably, drenching Minseon almost immediately. She shrieked in shock and staggered backwards, hands fumbling for the lock.

"Shit!"

The lock, rusty with age, refused to budge, stubborn against Minseon's numb fingers.

"Shit, shit, shit-"

Her trembling fingers dripping with ice finally opened the door and she stumbled out onto the wooden floor of the corridor, with a trail of growing terror following close behind.

Perhaps in the midst of the raucour she could hear Hwitaek's footsteps pounding towards her, but what horrified her was the water was no longer liquid, and appeared to be coming straight towards her like a snake, rising up from the ground. It became a transparent mutilated creature, snapping at her face.

Tripping over her own feet, Minseon tried to run away, and yelled when an icy finger curled around her ankle, yanking her back with astonishing strength. Slamming into the floor, she grunted in agony as pain surged through her body, hands scrambling for something to grip onto. She just about noticed the bare feet of a particular being nearby.

"Hwitaek, you ass! What the hell are you doing?!"

"I'm trying to help you!"

From what she could see, the demon stood in one place, not making a move. But a kind of energy began emanating from him, a bright light that soon blinded her. Minseon turned away, grappling onto an open door, attempting to shake off whatever it was on her foot. However, the force dug its nails into her, pulling her relentlessly towards the bathroom.

"Hwitaek-"

A flash nearly blinded her, and her arms went slack as did the grip on her foot, and she lay sprawled, blood seeping out of the small wounds dotted on her ankle. Her chest heaved, and she pushed herself to a sitting position, looking down at the wood. The door of the bathroom was still ajar, but everything was bone dry except for Minseon herself. If she examined it closely, maybe even stepped in, she'd discover that everything was back to normal.

Wiping the droplets off her face, she noticed Hwitaek a few metres away, not soaking wet, but partially on fire, as though wings protruded from his back. Although when he stood up, Minseon definitely thought it looked like his ass was on fire instead.

Passing a sheepish smile, Hwitaek ran his hand through his hair, shrugging. The flames vanished swiftly, and save for the painful crescent-shaped cuts Minseon bore on her skin, everything seemed back to normal.


	2. Chapter 2

# PROLOGUE | ZERO COLLATERAL DAMAGE

"So I told her that if she wants to fucking pretend to be Gordon Ramsay and yell at my coffee skills, she ought to find someone who's actually willing to commit and have a freaking family with someone like her!" Minseon yelled, absentmindedly hurling a toss pillow at the wall opposite her. She rapidly paced the length of her living room, gripping her phone so tightly you'd think she couldn't live without it.

She probably couldn't, either way.

"Okay, so fine, my comebacks aren't twenty four carat gold, but my words don't need to be plated with silver or some shiny shit in order to make an impact!" she ranted, flailing her right arm so carelessly the vase on the table nearby looked almost afraid of being knocked over.

"Calm down," chuckled Eunsol from the other end of the line. She was always remarkably calm when Minseon self-admittedly went 'batshit crazy'. Minseon found comfort in that, even though the two rarely talked.

They had constantly been rivalling sisters when young, and now were what could possibly pass as mature, as adults. Their clashing personalities were what had pulled them together, when once it was the very same thing that driven them apart.

But times change. Minseon learnt that eventually.

"But, seriously, how can someone stay like that for so long?" the girl complained, holding her hand up in a gesture that seemed as if she was praying for a miracle from the heavens. Then again, that's probably what she was trying to do. "Two years and a half, I've managed to keep quiet as I nod with a fake-ass smile every time, but no, she has to rub it all in my face, doesn't she? 

"And when I snap, do you know what she does? She fucking calls me bipolar. Like, I'm not that educated in mental conditions, but I still have a few brain cells left to understand how disrespectful that would b-" Abruptly, Minseon heard a continuous beep and gave an incredulous look at her phone. The call had ended, and she couldn't figure out if she accidentally hung up on the call in her rage, or if Eunsol simply got sick of her voice.

Honestly, I'd be tired of my own voice if I was my sister.

A little less furious than ten minutes ago, the girl inhaled and exhaled deeply, feeling better. She picked up the cushion on the floor, looking at the cover. Everyone except Eunsol who visited her small apartment would find it cheesy to have the family printed on it, until they were told it was because the parents passed away and it was a sort of tribute to them.

But time has passed, and there's no point to constantly dwelling on the past, so Minseon flung the cushion back onto the sofa, and headed towards the kitchen. Her stomach growled in anticipation.

CRASH!

Jumping, Minseon yelled incoherently at the sound of glass shattering, jolting her knee up and catching it on the graphite counter next to her. She hissed in pain, holding it, and hopped back to the living room. Her eyes widened considerably when she realised she could hear a person screaming at the top of their voice. The echo of the sound seemed to come from the bathroom.

What the hell?

Limping at a speed she never thought was possible, Minseon clumsily clambered up her wooden steps and stumbled her way into the bathroom.

She was shocked at the sight, to say the least.

Convulsing violently in the bathtub was a person engulfed within flames that licked the ceiling ravenously, as the body leapt madly in mid air while shrieking at a high pitch. Surrounding the tub were large shards of glass, from the now broken window that sat above the bath. She made sure not to go further, in fear of her own life. A wall of heat was just in front, threatening to slap her.

Stunned, the girl didn't know what to do. There wasn't any kind of fire extinguisher nearby, and she was afraid to leave the room for even a second. She'd turn on the bath tap and let normal water do the job but there was no way she'd risk burning herself by going so near. Yet she would have to risk her own neck in order to save this person from death.

This person who somehow wasn't dead yet. 

However, there was clearly no hope for the person, since Minseon couldn't think properly with them screeching so loud her eardrums were close to bursting. Then suddenly, out of nowhere, she seemed to have the epiphany of filling her hands with water from the wash basin and throwing it over the fire in a sordid attempt. When she did so, of course nothing changed, except she thought she could hear the burning figure say something amidst the agonised yells. Hurriedly, she tried to pour more water over the person, until she could make out a phrase.

"Stop it!"

Perplexed, she halted in her efforts. It was definitely a male's voice, but she didn't understand why the guy would want to be stopped. Perhaps he was trying to say something else.

The realisation that he wasn't dying any time soon hit Minseon, and, mouth agape, she staggered back. If she looked closely, the features of a face were still recognisable. They didn't seemed to be affected in any way, no charred skin. 

Abruptly, the flames extinguished quicker than lightning, leaving the room in almost complete darkness. There was a source of dim light from the smashed window, but that didn't help.

Minseon froze in her position, as if one movement would trigger a bullet to her head. She didn't dare to move, but had to shiver when she felt something tickle her neck. 

The lights switched on, and, blinking at the sudden glare, Minseon saw an empty and unmarked bathtub, with no sign of a smouldering figure. The dull white basin held nothing but air.

"What the fuck?" she said, narrowing her eyes. She was pretty sure she hadn't imagined it all. She felt very awake and alert.

At least five minutes must have passed before she realised how dumb she probably looked like just standing there, and turned around. Perhaps her fury had made her hallucinate. A weird theory, but maybe possible.

Minseon screamed in fright when she was about to leave, nearly falling backwards.

Holding a mug that was literally overflowing with flames, a boy a few inches taller stood awkwardly, shifting from one foot to the other. He wasn't fazed by the loud shriek.

"After that display I assumed you'd like something like hot cocoa to calm you down, but as you can see, that didn't work out so great."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for taking the time to read this garbage lmao haha as always. Also, the updates here will always be behind the updates on Wattpad (just search Lirusen up, I'll be there), so if you do read Screaming Demons there, please remember to not spoil for those reading here. Thank you,
> 
> -Li.


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